Chapter 4: Truth

Within half an hour, she could hear her mother and sisters arrive. She could not mistake the commotion downstairs. Her mother was shocked to understand from Mr Collins that Elizabeth had refused his proposal.

"Oh! That girl. She has lost her mind. I will not have it. Mr Collins, she must have been in shock when you proposed. She will be most grateful to accept your proposal. I assure you. I will talk some sense into her." Elizabeth could hear her mother cry from below.

Her father had not yet returned.

Lydia and Kitty giggled when they heard the matter. Mary immediately ran up to her sister.

"Lizzy, I cannot believe it. Are you alright?" She asked with concern.

"I am alright. I still cannot believe it, Mary. Is Papa here yet?"

"No, not yet. I suggest you avoid Mamma at the moment. She is really angry. Although, I don't understand why it is directed towards you. I cannot believe that man wants to marry soon after his wife's demise."

Elizabeth quickly explained how disgusting his proposal was.

"He should not be in our house, not amidst any of our sisters. I am sure Papa will send him away."

Mary looked at her with doubt.

Within moments the servant entered and asked Elizabeth to come to the parlor.

"Don't go, Lizzy. That man is downstairs. Let us wait for Papa."

Elizabeth was not scared to go down. She was angry. She was angry at her mother for scheming so.

"No, Mary! I have not done anything wrong. I need to speak to Mamma."

Mary followed her, not wanting to leave her sister behind.

As expected, Mr Collins was present in the parlour. He smiled at her as if nothing had happened.

"Lizzy, what is that hear from Mr Collins? He has honoured you with a proposal, and you behave rudely to him. Apologise immediately and convey your consent for the wedding."

"Mamma! I have done nothing to apologise. He is the one who needs to apologise to me. I refused him. I stay with my decision. There is no way I could marry him. He needs to leave Longbourn immediately."

"Shut up! What had gotten into you, you ill-mannered girl? Mr Collins, I assure you she will marry you."

"You cannot assure him anything. I will not marry him." Elizabeth said with determination.

Mr Collins got up and walked close to her.

"Why my dear cousin, you forget the nature of your position in this world. The circumstances of your family and your dowry will not induce any man to offer for you. You cannot get a better offer than mine. I assure you I forgive you for such ill-mannered behavior. Once we are married, I can assist you in shaping your temper."

Mary squeezed Elizabeth's hand, unable to bear what her sister was going through.

"It is none of your business as to what my future would be. All I know is that marrying you is equal to the same fate as that of your late wife. You must be ashamed to call yourself a man of God. Mamma, if at all you have the notion of convincing me in this matter, please give it up. I am making myself clear. I will not marry this man, nor will I have any other discussion with you regarding this matter."

She left along with Mary, and they could hear her mother abusing Elizabeth in all possible ways. She hoped her father would stand by her. Oh! Papa! Where are you?

"Lizzy, I am not as hopeful as you about Papa's interference in this matter."

"Why do you say so? He may not display his affections to us. But he will never allow one of his daughters to marry a man like Mr Collins."

"But, can't you see that he is on Mamma's side in every matter? He could have stopped that man from visiting us."

"That may be true, Mary. He always agrees with Mamma to escape unwanted conflicts with her. But I am sure this is not such a trivial matter. He must have agreed to the visit to pacify Mamma. But he will never allow me to marry him. I trust my intuition."

Mary was silent. Somehow, she could not agree.

Since her childhood, she had noticed how their mother treated her sister. She always attributed it to the fact that Elizabeth was different from all of them. She was intelligent and did not care for materialistic pleasures. Mary always looked up to her sister. Her mother's behavior vexed her, and she was almost sure her father was aware of her schemes.

Jane joined them in some time.

" You are an idiot. You know that. You will never get any other proposal in your life. Why didn't you say yes? Mamma is hysterical about it, and her rants give me a headache."

" Would you have said yes?" Elizabeth asked with irritation.

Jane laughed.

"You think that old man would even dare to propose to me? I am not you. I am beautiful and deserve a rich man. This position at the parsonage is quite sufficient for your standards."

" Jane, you are being cruel. We need to support Lizzy here." Mary said.

"And get into the bad books of Mamma? Never. Oh! I thought you would be gone soon, and I can have the room to myself." She said and sat by the mirror admiring herself.

Elizabeth fervently hoped her father would be back soon.

She did not eat anything and waited. Mary tried to comfort her. She slept out of tiredness. By evening, her father returned.

Before she could discuss it with him, her mother and Mr Collins met him in the library.

" Lizzy! Pappa is here. Let us hurry." Mary said, and they ran down.

Just then, they saw the library door open. Mr Collins came out with a sarcastic smile.

" My dear cousin, I intend your parents want to have a word with you. I am sure everything is going to turn out well." He said and disappeared up the stairs.

Mary and Elizabeth entered the library.

Mrs Bennet was seated, and her father was pacing the room with anger.

" Papa I.." Elizabeth started.

" Don't you dare justify your actions? What is wrong with you? Why did you refuse him?"

Elizabeth's heart sank.

"Papa, how could you? Were you aware of his intentions before he came here?" She asked with anger and tears.

" Mary leave the room." Mr Bennet yelled at her.

" Papa, please. Lizzy needs me " Mary said.

" No, she does not. She is not a child. Leave." He yelled again. Mary had no choice but to leave the room. She squeezed Elizabeth's hand and left.

" You will marry him. There is no more to discuss in this. Apologise to Mr Collins. He has graciously forgiven your behavior."

Mr Bennet said and down.

Elizabeth felt extremely angry. All these years, she thought her father neglected her because of his stressful life of managing the house with a meager income. She had never placed him on the same platform as her mother. Now she understood that he was no different.

" I never expected this of you. How do you expect me to accept a man like him? You do not care for my well-being, do you?" She cried.

" Oh! what is wrong with him? He has a decent living and assistance of a wealthy patroness. You are settled for life. You can even extend an invitation to couple of your sisters to stay with you. I am already struggling to manage Longbourn."

" How could you talk like this about your daughter? You are mentioning this proposal like a trade."

" Yes, it is! That man promises never to claim Longbourn once your father leaves us. He has no family. He will assist us with funds as well. What more can we want? All he wants is to marry you. And you will do so." Mrs Bennet said with resolve.

" Why me, Mamma? Tell me. Why me? Why not Jane? Isn't she the eldest?"

" How dare you? Is my darling Jane to marry a widower? Never. She is the jewel of Hertfordshire."

" If that is the case, what makes you think I will marry him?"

" Oh! He is good enough for you. Your plain looks and unruly behavior will fetch you no eligible bachelor. What if he is widowed? You will have a good living. You must be grateful to him."

Elizabeth was enraged.

" I do not care about him being widowed or not. I cannot marry him as I have no respect or affection for him. You cannot force me to."

" Of course, we can. You will do as we say. "

" I cannot. You can try all possible means to make me accept me, but it will be of no use."

Mr Bennet stared at her with anger. Elizabeth gave up on any expectation she had of him.

" All that matters to you is money, Papa. And my mother wants to throw me into misery citing that I may never get a proposal. I want to ask you both one question. Will you allow any of my sisters to marry him? Will you?"

She asked with anger. Tears ran down her face

Both her parents were silent.

" Why are you silent? I know the answer. You will never allow Jane of any of my sisters to marry him. Then why me? Why should I bear the ill fate of being married to that man beacuse of our financial woes? Why me? Answer me?" She cried.

She saw her father startle. Elizabeth continued.

"All these years, you have turned a deaf year to my concerns. Anything I do is subjected to scrutiny. What have I done wrong?"

Why do you consider me below Jane and my other sisters? Why does my welfare not concern you? I need an answer for this kind of agony you are trying to inflict upon me. Am I not your blood? Why do you care less about my welfare?"

" Yes, you are not my blood." Her father said with spite.

"You were born to someone else. Is this answer enough?" He asked her with a deadly look on his face.

For a moment, Elizabeth's world froze. She stared at her father in shock.

No! This cannot be true!